Letters from Harold Edward 'Pompey' Elliot to his family, November 1918 - February 1919 - Part 8

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2

So we are being gradually

depleted in numbers. It is

very sad watching the old Bns

dwindling down & all the old

men & officers being drafted 

off together & leaving a few

of us behind - the sooner they

send me now the better I'll be

pleased though with all the trouble

I will have to face as soon as i

arrive it will be as hard as

any battlefield or rather far worse

for I would rather go on facing

the Germans here for 20 years

than face those people Roberts

has cheated of their money. I am

wondering if ever you went out

to Mrs Roberts place. You said

you were going but never mentioned

having actually gone. I am so 

glad Wil Dhurach got rid of that

old Influenza. It is a horrid thing

& such a lot of people have died

from it over here. I am very

 

 

3.

sorry indeed to hear of Trie Walker's

illness. Lt. Sea[[?]] only last night

told me how well Eve was looking

& I was so pleased to hear it.

However did Foze come to know

Mrs Somers, you did not tell

me that Foze knew them at all.

I don't want her to know them

or anyone else that knows me 

either. She would ruin me with

anyone at all if she could & I only

wish there was some one would get

her away out of Melbourne.

before I get back there. I never want

to see her again. I wonder why poor

old Bob Smith didn't go to the welcome

home. Poor old chap he must feel

it terribly being laid aside at

his time of life & I fear it is

pretty serious for him. I am

sorry you were so offended about

that caricature of me in

the "Aussie". I didn't mind it

the least bit - & the boys here

 

 

4

thought it was rather good. So

you had better prepare to be shocked

when you see me if you find me

changed into a good likeness

of that picture. Won't you still

love me a teeny tinny bit if I do

look like that now Katie love - for

you must expect to find me

getting older & fatter & more ugly

each year. Not that you could have

found remarkable beauty in me

at any time. Perhaps that is

why General Birdwood never liked

me. Well Katie dear - I hope they

dont recite that poem c/- Mr Henderson

at me when I go back. - I fear

it is a bigger caricature of me

than Bragg's drawing of me. Bragg

is one of my boys & a good artist

so you mustn't sort him up at

all. I am wondering if Miss

Collins & Lily Wasley changed

their minds about coming over

I expect they did. You were

 

- 5 -

just getting down into the new place

at Surrey Hills when you wrote last

to me. I wonder what I am to do

when I get back - go to Kory for a job of

plowing I suppose. - not that I'd be

worth more than 10/ a week at that

for I've got fat & pretty useless &

most of the steam is out of me after

four years of war & this appointment.

However whatever I have found to do I

have done it with all my might

whether success or none has

attended my efforts. I will be glad

when I hear from you that the

Trustees are paid off. I hope

Begg does not dissuade you

from that. What a little fool

Lyn must be if only to gratify

her vanity she paid all the

expenses of the tea party for Genl

Pan rather than let Roy pay

for it. It was very extravagant

on her part but I suppose she

would be scandalous offended if

 

 

- 6 -

you said that to her. With regard

to my getting civilian clothes in England

the [[?alter]] is none to easy. Remember

there is about 6,000,000 British

Soldiers to be provided for & Australians

and Americans all got with the one idea

& that is to get into Civilian clothes

at once. Also about 20,000,000

English civilians have been wearing

old clothes for three or four

years & now they all want

new clothes because the war

is over. Genl [[?Herart]] got a suit after

terrible bother in England at

Xmas or just before & I think

so cost him nearly £20 for just

an ordinary sock [[?]] &

underclothing hats socks etc.

If I went into much of that I'd be

sending you a cable for some money.

It is all a terrible worry & I may

be glad before it is all over to buy

back some of those old suits that

you sold as my ordinary wear

 

 

7.

not that I want to have you doing 

that at all. It was natural. I am very

sorry to hear of the death of Liz's father

poor old chap. I wonder if he would

leave Liz any money at all. I

know the poem of Rupert Brook's

which you quote very well indeed.

My cousin Mrs Edwards gave

me a book of his poems some time

ago. There is no doubt that one or

two of his poems are very fine indeed

but I don't think many of them will

live. Poor Somers. I told you about

his death in a former letter. His

grave is desolate enough. I believe

they are going to dig up all these

poor scattered bodies up 7 make

a big cemetery of them somewhere or 

another for they are so many that

if they were allowed to remain

thousands & thousands of acres of

land worth up to £250 an acre

would have to remain out of

cultivation for ever so they the graves must

just be plowed over as soon as

 

 

(8)

soon as possible. I wonder whatever

those August letters were doing that

they took so long in reaching you.

I know that some of our July letters

were drowned. I was am afraid that

those describing our fight of the 4th

July where the 38th Bn did so well

all went to the bottom. I had a letter

from Major Tom Kirr late [[?]]

He has been on leave in England &

found himself getting deaf. He went

to Dr Ryan & the latter told him

he must return to Australia at

once. He is one of my best & oldest

officers. He will be always deaf the

Dr says the drums of the ear are

pierced no doubt by concussion of

the shells in big guns. Dave Doyle

a particularly nice boy & good officer

of mine goes very very soon too.

I will give him your address to

call & see you. Mr Tonkin &

Mr McPherson were very good

to you weren't they to help you

 

(9)

so much with the furniture as

they did - You talk about me

getting my reward soon - I'll get

the trick out for reward all right

& only your soft arms & loving kisses

will remain. & perhaps they will stop

too if I am long without a job 7 am

too much like Bragg's picture

now. I am glad Mrs Duigan

called upon Lyn but I think Lyn

has been talking about the Roberts

affairs as old Duigan mentioned

it on a letter to me. She no doubt

heard it from Eric Walker & if he

mentioned it to Lyn Mrs D. & she

speaks of it  to Foze the whole

fat will be in the fire then. I feel

like living in a powder magazine

with that Foze living in Melbourne

or anywhere whe where I am

within a 100 mile of her.

I hear the Prince of Wales

& General Birdwood are going

out to see Australia. Thank

[*Page 10 omitted*]

 

 

[[?Dourlers]]

7/1/18

My dear Katie

I am enclosing a letter I

got the other day from General Birdwood

also a tiny bit of the new ribbon it

contained. In the same I also enclose a

copy of extracts from the diary of one of the

Directors of Krupp's factory on the causes

of the war. It is very cold again today

Another draft of our men & officers

are going away very soon on the 9th

I think so our dissolution as a Brigade

cannot be far off. We are so weak

now that we would be practically

useless as a fighting force so we

might as well be at home. We are

only a useless empire to the

Country as we stand now.

I called on Madam Mercier yesterday & thank her

for the little wooden shoes. They were

badly off for coal & I was able to

arrange to have some sent to her from

some that the Germans left behind a few

miles away from here. The people

are getting their cows & some of their fowls